I would like to start by saying I think Mr. Silks does a great job
with the bow reviews. They are my favorite part of the magazine and the
section I turn to first each month. With that said, I was wondering if
there are any industry regulations on claimed IBO speeds and why Mr.
Silks doesn't call out companies that' are clearly fabricating
numbers. I have seen a few examples of this over the years of reading
the reviews but none more egregious than one a few years ago-328 fps
advertised IBO and it comes in at 273 fps during your standardized
testing?

If I work the numbers back to IBO, giving 10 fps for one inch
shorter draw length and 10 fps for the five pounds less draw weight, and
even giving a very generous 10 fps for the extra 25 grains of arrow
weight your testing utilizes, I come up with about a 303 fps IBO. Just
to be on the safe side, I'll give five more fps for a loop Jon may
have used on the string. Still, we are only at 308 and nowhere near 328.
I look forward to your insights.

Dr. Lukas Bundgaard, Woodbury Minn.

PB responds: We don't see much use in attempting to replicate
the manufacturers' IBO tests. However, by conducting our own
testing at "real world" settings of 29 inches and 65 pounds,
we provide our readers with objective, verifiable data they can rely
upon. Savvy readers such as Dr. Bundgaard can easily identify major
discrepancies between our results and advertised claims and draw their
own conclusions.